Obituary of William Long Swittenberg

Billy Swittenberg, 64, of Lexington, South Carolina, passed away peacefully on March 10, 2023.

A celebration of life service will be held on Sunday, March 19, 2023, at 3:00 pm at Platt Springs United Methodist Church, 3215 Platt Springs Road, West Columbia, South Carolina, with Reverend Debbie Miller officiating and Reverend Michael Hood assisting. Immediately following the service, the family will receive friends in the Platt Springs UMC Fellowship Hall.

Mr. Swittenberg was born in Newberry, South Carolina, on April 18, 1958. He was preceded in death by his parents, Cleone Elizabeth Long Swittenberg and William Curry Swittenberg, his mother-in-law Sarah Anne Stanton Adams and his father-in-law Gerald Neill “Catfish” Adams. He was also preceded in death by aunts and uncles, Ruby and Frank Bagwell, Hal Plumblee, Elizabeth and Harold Long, and cousin, Brian Mature.

Billy is survived by his daughter Sarah Elizabeth Swittenberg Shuler (Richard), West Columbia, SC, his first cousins, Suzanne Long, Columbia, SC, John Long (Betsy), Newberry, SC, Nora Plumblee Mature, (Roger), Travelers Rest, SC, Tommy Plumblee (Rosemary), West Columbia, SC. Also surviving are brother-in-law Mike Adams (Tammy), North Myrtle Beach, SC, sister-in-law Mary Helen Adams Allen (Mike), Clover, SC, nephews Stanton Adams, Washington, DC, Eli Allen and Adam Allen, Clover, SC, and niece Sydney Adams, Davidson, NC.

Billy was an only child, but shared close relationships with his first cousins Tommy, John, Nora and Suzanne. Together, the cousins enjoyed a beautiful life in the country. Especially memorable are the family cookouts and oyster stew on the weekends. Along with his parents, Billy faithfully served St. James Lutheran Church in Newberry, SC. Billy was active in the Jaycees where he met, and eventually married, Linda Adams of Clover, SC, on June 8, 1985. Linda and Billy’s marriage was one of total commitment, devotion, and absolute adoration for each other. Mark 10:6-8, no verse applies more aptly, “But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one. So, they are no longer two but one.”

Following his marriage to Linda in 1985, Billy transferred to Platt Springs UMC where they faithfully served for nearly forty years. During his years at Platt Springs, Billy was actively involved. He loved supporting his wife Linda in the work with children and youth. He was known to show up in costume for Trunk or Treat, dress as Santa Claus, and even regularly donned the robe as a wise man for the church nativity. Billy was always willing to help in any way, whatever the people of the church needed, he answered the call. If the doors of the church were open, Linda and Billy were likely pulling in with a van filled with supplies for the occasion.

Billy attended Bush River Elementary and Newberry High School, where he played football, the game he so loved. Billy earned the distinguished honor of Eagle Scout, achieved by only 4% of all men. Following high school, Billy attended Clemson University, a place he loved like no

other, playing club rugby and earning a degree in Agricultural Mechanization and Business. From this point on, Billy was an ALL IN Clemson Tiger fan, known to many as “Tiger Bill.” Billy never left home without representing Clemson Tigers. After Clemson, Billy worked briefly at US Soil and Conservation and later was a loyal employee at WP Law for close to forty years, dearly loved by all his coworkers and customers. Billy built long lasting relationships with customers because of his personalized treatment and genuine care for getting the job done just the way they wanted. Customers knew, if you were working with Billy, you were his priority! As a customer and later co-worker Joe Golson stated, “There will never be another soul like Billy, only imitations. He had a kind heart, was bright and amusing, and he touched people’s hearts in his rough-and-tumble “bull in the china cabinet” sort of way … Billy will always be with us.”

Billy and his wife Linda expanded their family with the beauty of chosen grandchildren: Jacob Kessel, Dima Busby, Madison and John Hannon, Everly and Bodie Guffey, Julia, Jacob, and Mia Guffey. Linda and Billy were affectionately known to these grands as “Nina” and “Bibi” and these children were a very bright spot in their everyday lives.

Sarah and Richard, along with the rest of Linda’s family, greatly appreciate those who generously reached out through texts, calls, cards, and gestures of kindness, especially recently.